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Selbitz (river)
Encyclopedia
The Selbitz is a left-bank tributary of the river Saale
in the eastern Franconian Forest (Frankenwald
) and is a watercourse of tertiary importance. Its source lies about 650 metres above sea level from a pond northwest of the Helmbrechts
quarter of Wüstenselbitz, flows around Helmbrechts at first in an easterly direction and then towards the north. As it continues it runs through the towns of Schauenstein
, Selbitz and Naila
, before flowing through the Hölle Valley (Höllental) between Hölle and Blechschmidtenhammer cutting a channel into the dolorite rock up to 170 m deep.
In the village of Hölle, a district of Naila on the left bank of the Selbitz, a 262 metre-deep mineral spring, the Höllensprudel, has been bored. From the mouth of the Thuringian Muschwitz
at the exit of the Hölle Valley and at its own confluence with the Saale near Blankenstein
the Selbitz forms the border between Bavaria
and Thuringia
for about 2 kilometres. The footbridge between the Bavarian hamlet of Untereichenstein and Blankenstein is also the end of the Thuringian Rennsteig
, a historical border path.
The river is 36.6 kilometres long and falls a total of 236 metres during its course. The name "Selbitz" probably comes from the Slavic word zelenovica and would therefore mean something like "green stream".
At almost any point the level of the Selbitz could rise theoretically without causing any problems, because it is mostly surrounded by meadows and in the town of Naila flows through a natural, but reinforced, channel between the station and the bridge by the football pitch. This enables the river to grow to more than twice its width during times of thaw, storms or heavy rain. From 2 to 4 December 2007 this could be observed. The area through which the river runs is surrounded to the left and right by strips of grassland that are used as meadows for sheep-grazing during times of the year when there is no snow.
Saale
The Saale, also known as the Saxon Saale and Thuringian Saale , is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Franconian Saale, a right-bank tributary of the Main, or the Saale in Lower Saxony, a tributary of the Leine.-Course:The Saale...
in the eastern Franconian Forest (Frankenwald
Frankenwald
thumb|View to DöbrabergThe Franconian Forest is a mid-altitude mountain range in Northern Bavaria, Germany. It is located in the district of Upper Franconia and forms the geological connection between the Fichtelgebirge and the Thuringian Forest...
) and is a watercourse of tertiary importance. Its source lies about 650 metres above sea level from a pond northwest of the Helmbrechts
Helmbrechts
Helmbrechts is a town in the district of Hof, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated on the Southern edge of the Frankenwald, 20 km southwest of Hof....
quarter of Wüstenselbitz, flows around Helmbrechts at first in an easterly direction and then towards the north. As it continues it runs through the towns of Schauenstein
Schauenstein
Schauenstein is a town in the district of Hof, in Bavaria, Germany. It is situated 13 km west of Hof....
, Selbitz and Naila
Naila
Naila is a town in the Frankenwald hills, in the Hof district of Bavaria. Naila is situated some 18 km from the larger city of Hof.-History:...
, before flowing through the Hölle Valley (Höllental) between Hölle and Blechschmidtenhammer cutting a channel into the dolorite rock up to 170 m deep.
In the village of Hölle, a district of Naila on the left bank of the Selbitz, a 262 metre-deep mineral spring, the Höllensprudel, has been bored. From the mouth of the Thuringian Muschwitz
Muschwitz
Muschwitz is a village and a former municipality in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it is part of the town Lützen....
at the exit of the Hölle Valley and at its own confluence with the Saale near Blankenstein
Blankenstein
Blankenstein is a municipality in the district Saale-Orla-Kreis, in Thuringia, Germany.Blankenstein is also a quarter of the city Hattingen....
the Selbitz forms the border between Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
and Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
for about 2 kilometres. The footbridge between the Bavarian hamlet of Untereichenstein and Blankenstein is also the end of the Thuringian Rennsteig
Rennsteig
The Rennsteig is a ridge walk as well as an historical boundary path in the Thuringian Forest, Thuringian Highland and Franconian Forest in central Germany....
, a historical border path.
The river is 36.6 kilometres long and falls a total of 236 metres during its course. The name "Selbitz" probably comes from the Slavic word zelenovica and would therefore mean something like "green stream".
At almost any point the level of the Selbitz could rise theoretically without causing any problems, because it is mostly surrounded by meadows and in the town of Naila flows through a natural, but reinforced, channel between the station and the bridge by the football pitch. This enables the river to grow to more than twice its width during times of thaw, storms or heavy rain. From 2 to 4 December 2007 this could be observed. The area through which the river runs is surrounded to the left and right by strips of grassland that are used as meadows for sheep-grazing during times of the year when there is no snow.